Rubber heel



G. C. WOOD.

-RUBBER HEEL.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT.22,1919 1,412,076, w Patented Apr. 11, 1922.

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fl/f' FTTORIYEYS UNITED STATES PATENT ornca.

GEORGE C. WOOD, WINTHROP, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TO WIIOS COMPANY, OF ST. IPAUL, MINNESOTA, A CORPORATION OF MINNESOTA.

RUBBER HEEIi.

To allwhomitmay concern:

Be it known that I, GEORGE C. Woon, a citizen of the United States, resident of Winthrop, in the county of Suffolk and State of Massachusetts, ha'veinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Rub ber Heels, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relatestoimprovements in rubber heels and the object of the invention is to rovide a heel that can be quickly andread' y secured to the boot or shoeby being nailed thereto, and which does not require an previously-formed holes, .through the rufiber or through the metal reinforcing sheet employed in connection therewith, for.

the passage of the fastening nails.

The invention consists generally in a rubher heel having a metal reinforcing sheet in position, the nails need. not be driven through such holes, but may be inserted at any part of the heel covered by said sheet and where holes are employed in the sheet, the nails may, or may not, pass through such holes.

In the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification.

Figure 1 is a plan view of the top surface 0f a rubber heel lift, embodying my invention,

Figure 2 is a longitudinal section on line 2 2 of Figure 1,

Figure 3 is a view similar to. Figure 1' showing a modified form of reinforcing sheet, 7

Figure 4 is a longitudinal section on line 4-4of Figure 3;

Figure 5 is a longitudinal section on line 5-5 of Figure 3 showing the heel lift in position on the shoe.

In .the accompanying drawing forming part of this specification, 2, in all of the Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Apr. 11, 1922.

' Application ifiledseptember 22, 1919. Serial No. 325,4 2.

views, represents a rubber heel lift of suit able area and thickness. 3, in each of the views, represents a metal reinforcing sheet that is set in to the top surface of the rubber heel lift so that the upper surface of the sheet is flush with that portion of the upper surface of the heel lift, that surrounds said sheet. The reinforcing sheet 3 .is preferably of the same outline, or substantially the outline, as the heel lift in which it is inserted, and it is preferably somewhat smaller than the heel lift in area so that a narrow border or rim 4 is formed entirely around the reinforcing sheet.

The sheet is formed of an easily penetrable metal so that when it is desired to secure the heel in place upon a boot or shoe, nails 5 may be driven through the'rubber heel lift at any point within the outline of the reinforcing sheet, and such nails, as indicatedat Fig. 5, may be driven through the rubber and through the easily penetrable metal sheet and into the leather heel or heel portion of the boot or shoe as indicated in Fig. 5 of the drawing.

It is preferable in order to secure the reinforcing sheet to the rubber, with the upper surface of the sheet flush with the upper surface of the surrounding portion of the rubber, to provide the reinforcing sheet with an opening or openings through which the rubber will pass when molding the heel,

thereby securely locking the reinforcing said edges being of serrated form, so as to engage with the rubber while the heel is being formed. I may also, as shown in Fig. 2, provide the reinforcing. sheet with downwardly and upwardly turned lips or flan es 7, which will become imbedded 1n the ru her as the heel is formed, thereby securely locking the reinforcing sheet in place.

Instead of having the large holes shown in Figs. 1 and 20f the drawings, I may provide the metal reinforcing sheet with a series of small-holes 8, punched through the re-' inforcing sheet and having downwardly extending lips which become imbedded or fastened in the rubber when the heel is formed.

In all instances and forms of the invention, it will be found that the reinforcing sheet may readily be penetrated by an ordinary nail such as is used for holding heels in place. The reinforcing she'et being penetrable at any point, it is unnecessary to put the nails in at any particular place or places. They may be driven anywhere within the circumference of the reinforcing sheet and will pass through the reinforcing sheet at any point until the head of the nail comes against the sheet as illustrated in Fig. 5 of the drawing.

If, in inserting a nail, it should happen to pass through an opening in the reinforcing sheet, no harm will be done as the head of the nail is in all instances designed to be of greater area than any hole in the sheet through which the nail might accidentally be passed. It therefore makes no difference. whether the nail passes through one of theholes in the reinforcing sheet or penetrates the metal at a point at a greater or less distance from said hole. It is" unnecessary to provide holes in the sheet that are especially designed for the passage of the nails.

It will be seen by examining Figure 5 that when nails are driven through the rubber lift, they penetrate the reinforcing plate and force small portions or burrs therefrom into the surface of theleather of the heel as clearly indicated in the drawing. The rubber lift is thereby firmly held in position and no cement or similar material is required to hold the rubber lift firmly in attachment to the leather of the heel. The manufacturer can afford to apply these lifts to the heels while in the course of manufacture and produce in the factory a complete heel with the rubber lift applied as described and at a saving in the cost of manufacture.

Another advantage arising from having the reinforcing plate at the top of the rubber and secured thereto in the manner described, is that this arrangement increases the wearing surface of the heel from one-sixteenth to one-eighth of an inch. Where reinforcing sheets or washers .are used and such devices are located near the center of the rubber, the wear of the heel soon comes down to the washer or reinforcing sheet which will become exposed and will scratch hard wood floors and cut up carpet. With such a heel, it is impossible to wear the rubber clear down to the level of the shoe or until the entire good of the rubber has gone before striking the metallic reinforcing plate or washer.

With my invention the entire rubber can be worn away practically before any portion of the metal sheet is exposed.

The details of construction may obviously be varied. in many particulars without departing from the object of my invention.

I claim as my invention The combination, with a rubber heel lift, 1

of an easily penetrable reinforcing metal sheet inset in the upper surface of the heel lift and provided with means for anchoring the sheet to-the body of the rubber heel, the upper surface of the sheet and the upper surface of the rubber being flush with each other,and said reinforcing sheet being adapted when perforated by the nails used in at taching the heel lift to the heel to form burrs forced into the surface of the leather heel and assisting in holding the rubber lift firmly in position.

In witness whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this 6th day of September 1919.

GEORGE C. WOOD. 

